British Mystery Novels 1945 - 1990: The Amateur Detective Mystery Author Index British mystery writers prior to World War II may be found at Early Mystery Novels and Novels of the Golden Age . Authors whose first book was published after 1990 will be found at British Mysteries Since 1990. Josephine Bell (1897 - 1987) Pseudonym of Doris Bell Collier Ball. Bell was born in Manchester, England. She was a physician and married a physician. She started writing mystery novels in 1936, and many of her mystery novels had a medical background. Although she was popular in England, her novels did not appear in the United States until 1955. A bibliography of her books may be found here. V.C. Clinton-Baddeley (1900 - 1970) Victor Vaughn Reynolds Geraint Clinton Clinton-Baddeley had a varied life. He received an MA at Cambridge.

Following this, he was an editor for the Encyclopedia Britannica, an actor, an author of original plays, adaptations, operettas, and radio scripts, and the owner-manager of Jupiter Records which featured recordings of poetry. It was only in the last four years of his life that he started writing detective fiction. His series detective was Dr. R. V. Davie who was an English professor at Cambridge University. The first book in the series was Death's Bright Dart which was published in 1967. A bibliography of his books is at Classic Crime Fiction . He has a varied listing at the Internet Movie Database. . You may hear Clinton-Baddeley read on YouTube . (Yes, his name is spelled wrong on YouTube) James Hadley Chase (1906 - 1985) is the pen name of Rene Brabazon Raymond who produced more than eighty novels, and who may be the king of thriller writers in England. He was born in London. He worked selling encyclopedias door to door, and as a traveler for a book wholesaler. In 1939, he wrote No Orchids for Miss Blandish which became a phenomenal best seller.

He served as a squadron leader in the Royal Air Force during World War II. He wrote in the style of American hard-boiled detective novels, and his books were set in the United States although Chase was only there a very few times. For more information, see this article at Crime Time. Many of his books were made into movies and a list may be found at The Internet Movie Database. . A bibliography of his books is at Fantastic Fiction . E. X. Ferrars (1907-1995) - This is a pseudonym for Morna Doris MacTaggert. Ms. Ferrars was born in Rangoon, Burma and grew up in England. In 1928, she earned a degree in journalism from University College in London. She wrote several series in the best traditions of the cozy mystery. Biographical information. Julian Symons (1912-1994) British author of mysteries, poetry, biographies, and criticism. Though he wrote several mystery novels, Symons greatest contribution to the mystery genre was as a historian and critic. He was long an advocate of the crime novel as opposed to the more conventional puzzle mystery.

A short biography and a bibliography may be found here . More information will be found in his obituary in the New York Times. Ellis Peters (1913 - 1995) Pseudonym of Edith Pargeter. Ellis Peters wrote 90 books but it was only with the publication of the Brother Cadfael novels that she achieved wide spread recognition. The first Cadfael novel A Morbid Taste for Bones was published in 1977. Edith Pargeter - A biography by Paul White for Dawley Heritage. The Cadfael Chronicles Dick Francis (1920 - 2010) was born in Tenby in southern Wales. He was riding horses by age five. He dropped out of school at age fifteen. He served as a pilot in the Royal Air Force during World War II. He became a professional jockey in 1948, and became one of the top jockies in England. In 1957, he retired from racing and started writing. He started as racing correspondent for the London Sunday Express. He published his first novel Dead Cert in 1962.

His horse racing novels were extremely popular and he won the Silver Dagger Award from the Crime Writers Association, and in 1996, he was named a Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America. A bibliography of his books may be found at the Fantastic Fiction web site. Edmund Crispin (1921 - 1978). Crispin is the pen name of Robert Bruce Montgomery. His series mysteries featuring amateur detective Gervaise Fen are some of the wittiest and most literate novels in the genre. Crispin was born in Chesham Bois, and attended St. John's College at Oxford University. He wrote his first Fen novel, The Case of the Gilded Fly in 1944 while still an undergraduate at Oxford. After graduation, he worked for a short time as a teacher, and was a reviewer of mystery novels for the Sunday Times. Under his Montgomery name, he published songs, choral pieces, and film scores and is best know for the scores for the Carry On movies. A biography and bibliography may be found at the Golden Age of Detection web site.

Margaret Yorke (1924 - 2012) Yorke is the pen name of Margaret Beda Nicholson. Yorke has written a short series of mysteries featuring amateur sleuth Patrick Grant, but most of her books have been stand-alone novels of crime, psychological suspense, and revenge. She has written over 50 books, and has won the CWA Golden Dagger award and the Diamond Dagger award. A biography and bibliography may be found at Wikipedia . More information may be found in her obituary in the Guardian. Hazel Holt (1928 - 2015) - British author of a very enjoyable series which features Sheila Malory, author and amateur detective, in a small English town. Ms. Holt has also written the biography of Barbara Pym. A bibliography of her books may be found at Fantastic Fiction . There is an interview with Ms. Holt at the Coffeetown Press web site. Antonia Fraser (1932 - ) grew up in Oxford. She is the daughter of Francis Aungier Pakenham who became the Earl of Longford in 1961. She received her bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Oxford.

She was married to Sir Hugh Charles Patrick Joseph Fraser in 1956. Later they were divorced, and she married the playwright Harold Pinter. She wrote a number of biographical works on figures from English history, but is know to mystery readers for her series about Jemimah Shore who is a British television reporter. The first Jemima Shore book, Quiet at a Nun was published in 1977. She received the Gold Dagger award from the Crime Writers Association for her nonfiction book The Gunpowder Plot. A bibliography of her works may be found at Fantastic Fiction Jonathan Gash (1933 - ) is the pen name of John Grant. Grant was born in Bolton. He studied medicine at the Royal College of Surgeons and Physicians. While studying there, he worked in antiques junk shops and as a stall attendant at a street antique market. Grant has had a general practice, worked at a pathologist, and a microbiologist. He is a fellow of International College of Surgeons and of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine. He published the first Lovejoy novel, The Judas Pair in 1977 which won the Creasy Award for the best first novel.

The Lovejoy series ran on television from 1986 to 1994. A bibliography of his works may be found at Fantastic Fiction . Jill Paton Walsh (1937 - ) - Ms. Walsh has written childrens and adult novels. She has also completed the novel, Thrones, Dominations, which Dorothy L. Sayers left uncompleted, and has since written other Lord Peter Wimsey novels. She also writes delightful mysteries which tell of the detecting adventures of Imogene Quy, a nurse at a Combridge university. Jill Paton Walsh Web Site . Sarah Caudwell (1939 - 2000). Sarah Caudwell only wrote 4 mystery novels but they are gems which shouldn't be missed. Her sleuth was professor Hilary Tamar, an Oxford don. It is impossible to tell whether Hilary is a man or a woman. Tamar investigates crimes with the assistance of the barristers in chambers at Lincoln's Inn, and these are some of the most eccentric and wittiest characters in mystery literature.

The four books are Thus was Adonis Murdered, The Shortest Way to Hades, The Sirens Sang of Murder, and The Sibyl in Her Grave. For more information, read the article A Most Ingenious Legal Mind: Sarah Cauldwell by Martin Edwards. A biography and bibliography may be found at Crime and Mystery Fiction web site. Lindsey Davis (1939 - ) was born in Birmingham, read English at Oxford, and then worked in the civil service until 1985. She is best known for her series about Marcus Didius Falco, who solves crimes in Rome in the 70's. The first novel of the series, The Silver Pigs was published in 1989. Ms. Davis has won many awards including the CWA Cartier Diamond Dagger which honours outstanding achievement in the field of crime writing. For more information, visit her web site Ruth Dudley Edwards (1944 - ) Author of both mystery fiction and nonfiction. She is the author of several extremely funny satires of the English establishment. She was born in Ireland, but moved to England for college and has lived there ever since.

She has worked as a marketing executive, a civil servant, and a journalist. Her novels feature Robert Amiss, a civil servant, and also members of the police force. It is Amiss who usually solves the crime. Her first mystery novel was Corridors of Power. She has been shortlisted several times for CWA Last Laugh award. Her web site Simon Brett (1945 - ) Brett started his career as a television producer for BBC. His first series featured Charles Paris, a frequently out-of-work and frequently drinking actor who tries to solve mysteries. Brett also writes a series about Mrs. Pargeter, the well-to-do widow of a gentleman who was engaged in some sort of criminal activity. Mrs. Pargeter has learned some interesting skills from her late husband which help with her detective activities. His newest series is about the English retirement community of Featherington where the crimes are investigated by Carole Seddon and her friend Jude. For more information, visit Simon Brett's web site. Sarah J. Mason (1949 - ). Perhaps you know her better as Hamilton Crane, the author of the Miss Seeton Mysteries . Miss Seeton is a wonderfully eccentric retired art teacher who tackles the world of crime with her umbrella.

Mason took over this series from the first two writers, Heron Carvic and Hampton Charles. Miss Mason also writes a series under her own name about Detective Superintendent Trewley and Sargent Stone of the Allingham Police Department This site is maintained by Linda Bertland, Philadelphia, PA. Please address any comments, additions, or corrections to info@sldirectory.com CRIME - By NEWGATE CALLENDAR - NYTimes.com CRIME; By NEWGATE CALLENDAR Published: April 10, 1988 Partly it's a parable, taking us from Eden to a problematic future. Partly it's a social study about benevolent dictatorship. It has a lot to do with human greed. It's also a rattling good adventure story. It is ISLAND by Thomas Perry (Putnam, $18.95), and whatever it is, it's wacky, imaginative, funny, serious and altogether different. God created the earth in six days. It takes Harry Erskine years to create his island. But then again, he is not God. As ''Island'' opens, he is a con man fleeing with his wife, Emma.

He has stolen $500,000 from a mobster, and goons are after them. Harry and Emma get safely to the Caribbean, where he starts thinking about his next hustle. He conceives a great scam. Why not take over an uninhabited island and make it a tax haven, a place for tax evasion, a great washer in which dirty money can be laundered? He finds such a place, but it's a reef mostly under water. So an island has to be created. Dirt and fill have to be brought in. Hot money has to be attracted. Eventually an island is formed. Harry brings workers in to stay permanently. He keeps extending the island. Banks hasten to establish offices. Golf and baseball lure tourists. Harry becomes incredibly rich. But such things do not go unnoticed. The United Nations has a debate over the island. The C.I.A. and the State Department start looking into it. Harry finds that if you are a wealthy little country you can be invaded by hungry forces eager to take over, and that is what happens. Working with a smart mercenary, Harry and his forces repel the invasion. There is more, much more. ''Island'' can be read on many levels.

Try not to miss it. * * * Just as ''Island'' transcends its genre, so does YOUR ROYAL HOSTAGE by Antonia Fraser (Atheneum, $15.95). It is the story of the terrorist kidnapping of a British princess on the eve of her marriage to a Continental prince. But the author is more interested in character than in plot. Her princess is no cardboard cutout. She is a spoiled, shrewish young woman who has unexpected resources. The terrorist group consists of a bunch of crazies, each with a code name of an animal: Monkey, Lamb, Fox and so on. They have a thing about animal rights. Their demands, when they capture the princess, will include such things as the abolition of fur coats. They claim to be pacifists who would shudder at the sight of blood. Yet one of their members seems not to hesitate at murder. This is the seventh book in a series featuring Jemima Shore. She is a television reporter who gets a job covering the nuptials and helps solve the case, thanks to some coincidences and a good memory. Antonia Fraser sustains our interest in the story with her sharp and telling characterizations.

* * * A CUP OF DEATH by Gene Thompson (Random House, $16.95) stars Dade Cooley, an elderly lawyer from San Francisco. One of his friends, a professor of classics, is found murdered. The police pick up a young man, the son of the professor's housemaid, and book him. Their theory is that he entered the house with robbery in mind and was surprised by the victim. But the only missing item is a piece of costume jewelry. Cooley talks to the youth and decides to defend him. He starts his own investigation and learns that there were many who had good reason to kill the professor. Cooley's wife, Ellen, is his right hand, as she has been in previous books by Mr. Thompson. And to no reader's surprise, the missing piece of costume jewelry turns out to be something infinitely more valuable. It's a very complicated plot, and Mr. Thompson has many strands to weave together. Which he does, neatly and artistically. * * * Another San Francisco lawyer turns up in THE HOUSE OF BLUE LIGHTS by Robert J. Bowman (St. Martin's, $15.95).

As this first novel opens, Cassandra Thorpe is closing her private investigator's office to take a quiet job in a law firm. A street bum asks her to look into something and leaves her a sealed envelope. He is promptly killed. Then she is attacked and hurt. A psycho is after her. The most interesting aspect of this book is the long, sensitive look at the underbelly of San Francisco, with its bums and winos, its wheeling and dealing, its missions and flophouses. There is a touch of poetry in Mr. Bowman's descriptions. And there is the spunky Cassandra, a woman with a social conscience and no little knowledge of the law. One has a strong feeling that she will be back. * * * Ted Allbeury, one of the better exponents of the British espionage novel, turns in his usual dependable job in THE JUDAS FACTOR (Mysterious Press, $15.95). This is about Tad Anders, an undercover agent who runs a nightclub in London's Soho and who kills when so ordered by his masters. Opposed to him is a Russian agent, also a killer.

This Russian has taken out some British operatives in Europe, so Anders is sent into East Berlin to get the assassin and bring him back alive as a message to the K.G.B. Things go haywire. But Anders is a resourceful maverick and manages to bring it all to some kind of conclusion, even if it is not the conclusion he had in mind. ''The Judas Factor'' is not one of Mr. Allbeury's very best, but it has enough in it to keep the reader glued to the page. * * * Vancouver, British Columbia, is the locale of Laurence Gough's first novel, THE GOLDFISH BOWL (St. Martin's, $13.95). Here a sniper is having fun, picking off women and then men, including a police officer. When the officer is killed, the entire resources of the police department are mobilized. Mr. Gough is a competent writer, but there is a hysterical ending with a Least Likely Suspect, and the plotting does not ring true. * * * Here's another first novel, A SECRET SINGING by Richard C. Smith (New American Library, $16.95).

The author is a lawyer in Maine, and he has attempted a tough-guy private-eye novel. His hero is James Maxfield Mallory, and the setting is metropolitan Boston. Mallory, a Harvard graduate, started law school and quit, disgusted with his studies. He was interested in justice, ''but they weren't teaching it.'' So he became a private investigator. A rich woman hires him to check up on her stepfather, an elderly man involved with a much younger woman - a lawyer who resigned from her firm and moved in with him. During the first hour of Mallory's investigation, the stepfather dies after a round of golf. He has been poisoned. Mallory follows through in normal fashion, and things happen in normal fashion. He is warned off by thugs. He gets guns pointed at him. He has a romance. He survives everything and solves the case. The only really unusual thing about ''A Secret Singing'' is the author's cynical look at the legal profession.

Authors – F | Cozy Mystery List Cozy Mystery List A Guide to Cozy Mystery (and Other Favorite) Books and DVDs A Guide to Cozy Mystery (and Other Favorite) Books and DVDs As you have probably noticed, there are many non-cozy mystery authors included in these alphabetized author lists. In all of the mystery reading groups I have belonged to, whether the group was touted as a cozy mystery reading group or not, it seemed like we would always include books in the different mystery genres. There are cozies, of course, police procedurals, thrillers, hard-boiled, true crime, gritty/realistic/graphic mysteries, mysteries with amateur sleuths even mysteries featuring mystery-solving talking animal sleuths (à la Rita Mae Brown!). There are mystery authors with all types of educational and professional backgrounds…. teachers, librarians, journalists, even district attorneys! And, of course, there are mystery series that are theme-based…. herbal, historical, crossword puzzles, bed and breakfasts, book store owners…. these are just a few of the many themes that cozy mystery authors have used. An example of a theme-based series is the Needlecraft Mystery Series which is written by Monica Ferris , an author who I happen to follow.

The Needlecraft Mystery Series features Betsy Devonshire, the owner of a needlepoint shop, which is where a lot of the mystery-solving takes place. A theme sometimes is what brings a new reader to a series. But, if the author “can’t deliver the goods,” the series won’t thrive. Nancy Fairbanks aka Nancy Herndon …Has MA from Rice… She has two very strong series: one is a comical police procedural (Elena Jarvis) and the other is a culinary mystery series. Linda Fairstein Not Cozy… Fairstein served as Manhattan’s Sex Crimes Prosecution Chief for many years, and now has a bestselling series of books featuring an assistant D.A., who specializes in sex crimes. Marnette Falley Falley is the author of the fourth Queen Bees Quilt Mystery Series books. (The quilting-themed mystery series was started by Sally Goldenbaum .) Ann C. Fallon Solicitor in Ireland series…. Jerrilyn Farmer Farmer writes the Madeline Bean culinary mystery series which takes place in Hollywood and in 2009 she released her first mystery in the Red Carpet Murder Mystery Series which she is co-writing with Joan Rivers! Sharon Farrow (aka 1/2 of D.E.

Ireland ) Farrow writes the Berry Basket Mystery Series which takes place near Lake Michigan and features a berry shop owner. Ireland is the pseudonym used by two authors – Meg Mims and Sharon Pisacreta (aka Sharon Farrow). As Ireland, they write the Eliza Doolitttle and Henry Higgins Mystery Series, in which Eliza teams up with Professor Higgins to sleuth in Edwardian London. Howard Fast aka E. V. Cunningham … I have enjoyed his Masao Masuto series very much… Connie Feddersen Feddersen writes the Amanda Hazard Mystery Series which is set in Oklahoma and features a CPA/Sleuth… Vickie Fee – Vickie Fee spent much of her early life in Tennessee, growing up in Memphis and earning her degree in journalism. She then worked for various small Southern newspapers before starting her Liv and Di in Dixie Mystery Series, starring a party planner named Liv McKay and her best friend Di Souther, who live in the fictional town of Dixie, Tennessee. Mary Feliz Feliz has a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and has worked in corporate communications. Even though she has lived in five states and two countries, she considers Silicon Valley in California to be her home.

She writes the Maggie McDonald Mystery Series, which stars a professional organizer, wife, and mother who has a tendency to stumble on incriminating evidence in the course of her job. Monica Ferris aka Mary Monica Pulver & half of the duo who wrote as Margaret Frazer for the first of the Sister Frevisse novels. For all of the cozy mystery fans who enjoy needlework, Ferris writes the Needlecraft Mystery Series. I happen to be one of the many needle-working, cozy-reading people who truly enjoy her Needlecraft Mystery Series! Chrystle Fiedler Fiedler, a Boston University grad with a communications major, writes the Natural Remedies Mystery Series which features, as its sleuth, Willow McQuade, N. D. (Naturopathic Doctor). This mystery series has the added benefit of also including natural remedies like yoga, herb and flower uses, and meditation. Sharon Fiffer Fiffer writes non-fiction with (and without) her husband, Steve, but her Jane Wheel mystery series is solely her own gem. She has also taught writing at the college level.

Christy Fifield (aka Christy Evans ) Fifield writes the Haunted Souvenir Shop Mystery Series, which has, as its sleuth, the owner of a Florida souvenir shop. As Evans, she writes the Georgiana Neveral Mystery Series, which features an apprentice plumber in Oregon. Charles Finch Finch was nominated for the 2007 Agatha Award for Best First Novel, which is a huge accomplishment! (The Agatha Awards are named after Agatha Christie, and are the most Cozy of mystery awards.) His Charles Lenox Mystery Series is set in London, during the 1860s. Kay Finch – Kay Finch, a paralegal, may have grown up in rural Pennsylvania, but she now makes her home in Houston, Texas. She has set both her Bad Luck Cat Mystery Series (which features Sabrina Tate, and aspiring mystery author) and her Corie McKenna Mystery Series (which features a private investigator) in Texas. Honora Finkelstein Finkelstein writes the Ariel Quigley mystery series with Susan Smily . Finkelstein has a Ph. D.

in English and has had several different careers, working as an intelligence officer with the Navy, a professor, and a newspaper editor (among her other jobs.) The Finkelstein/Smily series is unusual in that each mystery novel has a recipe book that features the recipes described/used in the novel. Janet Finsilver – Janet Finsilver has had a number of careers before becoming an author. She was a teacher as well as a program administrator, and also a member of the National Ski Patrol! Janet Finsilver is the author of the Kelly Jackson Mystery Series, which stars Kelly, the manager of a northern California Bed and Breakfast. Eve Fisher Fisher is one of the authors who pens a Mystery and the Minister’s Wife book. This series is unique in that each book is written by different authors (some of the authors pen more than one book in the series.) Other authors of the series include Diane Noble, Traci DePree, Beth Pattillo, & Carol Cox. It is an inspirational mystery series… Judy Fitzwater Her first series (the “Dying to …”) is a cozy, while her new series is described as a thriller, with plenty of action and adventure.

“Jessica Fletcher” of Murder, She Wrote…(with Donald Bain ) I think almost everyone knows who Jessica Fletcher is! She’s a retired high school teacher who currently writes mystery books. She also solves mysteries. Some bookstores insist on putting the “Murder, She Wrote” books in the “F” (as in Fletcher) section. Well, I have gone ahead and added it to the F section of this site, as well, since that’s where some people expect to find the Murder, She Wrote Mystery Series. Elaine Flinn Flinn was an antique dealer before writing her Molly Doyle mystery series. Shamini Flint Flint is a former lawyer who took up writing because it is a career that still allows her to be a full time mom. Though more well known for her children’s series, the Sasha Series and the Diary Series, she is also the author of the Inspector Singh Investigates Mystery Series. This series stars Inspector Singh, an over weight, bumbling, but highly talented Singaporean detective whose work takes him to various Asian locations to help solve various cases. Amanda Flower (aka Isabella Alan ) Flower, a librarian at a small college, writes the India Hayes Mystery Series which features a college librarian/sleuth.

Flower also writes the Appleseed Creek Mystery Series. This series takes place in Ohio Amish country, and features a sleuth who works at a college in the computer field. Also, she writes the Amish Candy Shop Mystery Series which is set in Ohio and features Bailey King, a chocolatier. She also writes the Magical Bookshop Mystery Series which features Violet, who works in her grandmom’s magical bookstore and the Living History Museum Mystery Series which features Kelsey Cambridge, the director of a museum in Ohio. Flower also writes the Andi Boggs Mystery Series for children. As Alan she writes the Amish Quilt Shop Mystery Series. Jean Flowers (aka Camille Minichino , Margaret Grace , & Ada Madison ) Flowers writes the Postmistress Mystery Series, which features sleuth, Cassie Miller. Cassie left her job as manager of Boston’s main post office, to take the job of Postmistress in her home town’s post office in Massachusetts. As Grace she writes the Miniature Mystery Series, featuring dollhouse miniaturist Geraldine Porter as its sleuth. As Minichino she writes the Periodic Table Mystery Series – a series about a physicist/sleuth.

As Madison, she writes the Sophie Knowles Mystery Series – which features a college mathematics professor/beader/sleuth. Joanne Fluke I started reading Fluke’s series when it was called the Cookie Jar series, however it is now known as the Hannah Swensen Mystery series. I enjoy the series, and especially like Hannah, the no-nonsense sleuth who also is the owner of a bakery. Fluke worked as a caterer and cook, and she also has taught school, as well as held several other jobs… including working as a private detective’s assistant! Rae Foley aka Elinor Denniston, Dennis Allan, & Helen K. Maxwell…. perhaps best described as cozies with romance…. G.M. Ford Not cozy…. described as thrillers… Chris Forman An English and Social Studies teacher, Forman now pens the Maria Hart Mystery series which is about a Chicago insurance investigator. Also, Forman writes the Port City Mystery Series which revolves around Ian Wallace, a North Carolina food writer and photographer sleuth. Christopher Fowler I have not read any of his books…. yet.

In the research I did, I found that he is able to interweave life in London in the 1940s with today’s life in London. Earlene Fowler The Benni Harper series features a museum curator, quilter/cowgirl sleuth. Fowler also writes the Ruby McGavin Mystery Series which features a Califonia ranch owner. Sarah Fox Fox is from Vancouver, British Columbia, and is a legal writer. She is the author of the Pancake House Mystery Series, which stars Marley McKinney, manager of a pancake house. Recipes are included in the Pancake House series. She also writes the Music Lover’s Mystery Series, which stars Midori Bishop, a violinist in a philharmonic orchestra. Dick Francis Not Cozy… Francis was a champion jockey in Great Britain, even riding for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth. He suffered an injury which caused him to retire, but he then took his love for horse racing and began a very successful career writing mysteries that take place in the world of horse racing. (On the Crime Writers’ Association Top 100 Crime Novels of All Time ) Anthea Fraser Both of her series are set in England… Detective Chief Inspector David Webb and biographer Rona Parish.

Antonia Fraser Lady Antonia Fraser is Oxford-educated, and is best known for the historical biographies she writes. Her mystery novels feature Jemima Shore, a television investigative reporter. Gail Fraser Before writing the Lumby Series, Fraser worked in corporate America. (She has her MBA.) Although her Lumby Series is not a mystery series, it has been recommended for the site… If you like Jan Karon’s Mitford Series, you might enjoy Fraser’s Lumby Series… Margaret Frazer aka Mary Monica Pulver ( Monica Ferris ) & Gail Frazer… This is confusing, but I will try to explain: Margaret Frazer was the collaboration of two women: Mary Monica Pulver and Gail Frazer. They split their writing duo after the sixth Sister Frevisse Medieval Mystery Series novel.. Gail Frazer is now Margaret Frazer… Frazer also writes the Joliffe the Player Mystery Series which is set in 15th century England. Shelly Fredman Fredman, when not teaching elementary school, writes the Brandy Alexander Mystery Series which features a Journalist who returns home to Philadelphia. Christina Freeburn Freeburn worked for the JAG (Judge Advocate General) in the US army as a legal specialist.

She has also worked as a paralegal, a librarian, stay-at-home mom, and also a church secretary before taking up writing Cozy Mysteries and romance novels. Her Cozy series, the Faith Hunter Scrap This Mystery Series, stars Faith Hunter, a former JAG legal specialist now running her grandmother’s scrapbooking store. (Christina also has a passion for scrapbooking!) Mary Freeman Gardening mystery series…… Christy Tillery French French writes the Natasha Chamberlain Mystery Series which features a female bodyguard in Tennessee. Linda French French is a history professor who lives in Washington state. She held the record in Georgia for the backstroke, and now enjoys swimming in Puget Sound. She writes the Professor Teodora Morelli Mystery Series which features an athletic history professor in Washington state. Shelley Freydont Freydont is a retired dancer with both her BFA and MFA from the University of Utah, who writes the Lindy Haggerty series. Lindy happens to be a retired dancer, also. And, as of 2007 Freydont now writes a Sudoku mystery series for all of you Sudoku fans!

Freydont also writes the Celebration Bay Mystery Series which has, as its sleuth, an event planner in New York. Kinky Friedman Not cozy…. Kinky Friedman, who along with writing a mystery series that features a country western singer/sleuth, may also be famous for running for governor of Texas in 2006. Susan Froetschel With her M.P.A. from the JFK School of Government at Harvard, Froetschel is now a faculty member in the Journalism Department at Southern Connecticut State University. She has penned two Alaskan mysteries, as well as worked as a reporter. Sara Hoskinson Frommer Frommer has her degree in German, is a quilter and charter member of a symphony’s viola section. Her heroine Joan Spencer also plays the viola while sleuthing. Susan Furlong (aka Lucy Arlington , Susan Furlong-Bolliger, & S. Furlong-Bolliger) Furlong is taking over the writing duties as Lucy Arlington, from Jennifer Stanley (aka J.B. Stanley & Ellery Adams) and Sylvia May, starting with the 4th Novel Idea Mystery Series’ book. Furlong writes the Georgia Peach Mystery Series, which features Nola Harper.

Nola works on her family orchard in a small town in Georgia. Furlong is also the author of the Pippi O’Brien Mystery Series and she has written several Untreed Reads’ mystery stories. Frances Fyfield aka Frances Hegarty… Two British series from which to pick….. Jemima Shore's First Case and Other Stories: Amazon.co.uk: Antonia Fraser: 9780297789505: Books Jemima Shore's First Case and Other Stories Enter your mobile number or email address below and we'll send you a link to download the free Kindle App. Then you can start reading Kindle books on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required. Apple To get the free app, enter your mobile phone number. or Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here , or download a FREE Kindle Reading App . Product details Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson; 1st ed. edition (18 Sept. 1986) Language: English Product Description About the Author The acclaimed English biographer Lady Antonia Fraser is also a talented mystery writer whose Quiet As a Nun was filmed for the Mystery! series on PBS. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item? Buy Jemima Shore`s First Case - And Other Stories Book Online at Low Prices in India | Jemima Shore`s First Case - And Other Stories Reviews & Ratings - Amazon.in Product Description About the Author The acclaimed English biographer Lady Antonia Fraser is also a talented mystery writer whose Quiet As a Nun was filmed for the Mystery! series on PBS. Enter your mobile number or email address below and we'll send you a link to download the free Kindle App. Then you can start reading Kindle books on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required. Apple Jemima Shore's First Case and Other Stories (Curley Large Print Books): Amazon.co.uk: Antonia Fraser: 9781555046538: Books Jemima Shore's First Case and Other Stories (Curley Large Print Books) Enter your mobile number or email address below and we'll send you a link to download the free Kindle App. Then you can start reading Kindle books on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required. Apple To get the free app, enter your mobile phone number. or Don't have a Kindle?

Get your Kindle here , or download a FREE Kindle Reading App . Product details Publisher: John Curley & Assoc; Lrg edition (Sept. 1988) Language: English Product Description About the Author The acclaimed English biographer Lady Antonia Fraser is also a talented mystery writer whose Quiet As a Nun was filmed for the Mystery! series on PBS. --This text refers to the Paperback edition. What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item? The 80s Detective Ready Reckoner | Den of Geek Search The 80s Detective Ready Reckoner The perms and bell-bottoms abated to tropical couture and teamwork, here are the best of eighties tecs... Breakaway (BBC 1980) Martin Jarvis Supt. Sam Harvey had a children's book published and decided to leave the force to concentrate on writing. After his superior gives him some horrifying news he finds himself embroiled in a murder mystery which becomes a personal crusade for justice. Jarvis appeared in two six part Francis Durbridge thrillers The Family Affair and The Local Affair.

Thomas Magnum Magnum PI (ITV 1981-88) Tom Selleck Selleck had appeared in the latter years of The Rockford Files as a young upstart, brought in to rival Rockford. Two years later Selleck had his own show. Magnum, when not house-sitting for Multi-millionaire Hillerman, drove a red Ferrari around familiar exotic locations (the show often used the same locations as Hawaii Five-O) solving small town crime. Perhaps the last time a man with a 'tash would be deemed attractive. Maggie Forbes The Gentle Touch (1980-84) Jill Gascoigne ITV's answer to Juliet Bravo. Maggie Forbes was a female plain-clothes detective Inspector, often seen at loggerheads with her chauvinistic colleagues. Over time she was gradually accepted and respected. Later Forbes headed up an all-female intelligence organisation in C.A.T.S Eyes... Sgt Cribb Cribb (ITV 1980-81) Alan Dobie Essentially a police procedural set in Victorian times, Alan Dobie played Cribb, a determined by-the-book detective sergeant.

The series had great attention to detail, often weaving genuine events into the script. Overlooked these days as much of its impact was eclipsed by the equally well made Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. Johnny Ho The Chinese Detective (BBC 1981-82) David Yip David Yip played Sgt Johnny Ho, a chinese immigrant determined to be a policeman to please his aged father. Ho was an outsider struggling for acceptance often showing up the inherent racism both within the police force and the criminal underworld. Having written-off his car, Ho drives around in a distinctive green and wooden-panelled Morris Minor Traveller. Ho's scruffy image and unconventional approach lead to many a run-in with his superior, the engagingly charmless DCI Berwick, played with great appetite by genre veteran Derek Martin. Jim Bergerec Bergerac (BBC 1981-91) John Nettles The Tax haven island of Jersey provided a glamorous backdrop to the cases of The Bureau Des Etrangers. Sergeant Jim Bergerac, a solid performance from John Nettles, was beset by a problematic personal life. An ex-alcoholic with a gammy leg, Bergerac was also recently divorced.

He could rely on his dark red 1947 Triumph Roadster (in reality the car caused many problems for the production team). One of the BBC's most popular and enduring shows, Bergerac wasn't without flaws. Most notable among these was Jim's uncanny ability to link most of his cases to his father-in-law Charlie Hungerford, who week after week would befriend the chief suspect. Christine Cagney, Mary-Beth Lacey Cagney & Lacey (BBC 1982-88) Sharon Gless and Tyne Daly A female Starsky and Hutch. This chalk and cheese duo shared their personal problems with each other as well as their work. A very credible female cop show, it was originally devised as a vehicle for Loretta Swit, who played Christine Cagney in the pilot TV movie. Meg Foster was Cagney in the first short series, which was more hard-edged. Producers fired Foster for being too butch and brought in Sharon Gless for the second series and then, deciding it still wasn't working, cancelled the show.

The viewers knew better and it became one of the first series to be brought back by popular demand - although Tyne Daly's best actress award may have been the clincher. Neal Washington Hill Street Blues (ITV 1981-82, Channel 4 1983-9) One of the most influential American police shows of the era and one of Channel Four's early success stories. The use of single handheld cameras to capture the sometimes chaotic action was revolutionary, setting the template for drama in general and ITV's The Bill in particular. Hill Street Blues featured several detectives over the years. Chief amongst these was the toothpick-chewing Neal Washington and "JD" LaRue, his heavy drinking buddy. There was Mick Belker, a scruffy undercover cop with a vicious streak and a later recruit was Harry Garibaldi, a cop whose name is crying out for a spin-off series. Hill Street Blues had a heavy dose of realism, sometimes cases wouldn't be resolved, other times the police were the bad guys. In short Hill Street was a dangerous area, requiring very astute policing.

As they used to say at roll call "let's be careful out there..." Adam Dalgliesh PD James: Death Of An Expert Witness, Shroud For A Nightingale etc (ITV 1983-98) Roy Marsden Roy Marsden's poetry reading Commander Adam Dalgliesh was one of the first "cerebal detectives". A widower living in a windmill, pre-dating Jonathan Creek for that particular quirk. The stories had an edgy thriller atmosphere, well written and acted and not without scary moments. Unlike many detective series Dalgliesh's cases were serials (often six or seven parters) with several being produced intermittently over a period of fifteen years. Jemima Shore Jemima Shore Investigates (ITV 1983) Patricia Hodge Upper crust adventures with the TV reporter turned sleuth, a creation of the noted historian Lady Antonia Fraser. Arguably, a little too upmarket for its own good, only one short series was made. Matt Houston Matt Houston (BBC 1983-85) Lee Horsley A poor man's Magnum. Matt Houston was a rich ex-cattle rancher turned part time sleuth.

An mid-decade filler on BBC1 that merely emphasized the lack of a good British private eye series. Jim Taggart Taggart (ITV 1983 onwards) Mark McManus Steely Mark McManus was a hard cop policing a hard city. The series was shot through with black humour. Jim Taggart could be quite philosophical when it suited him. Sadly McManus died in 1994 but it's some tribute to his work on the series that Taggart continues to this day with his colleagues brought to the fore and is about to clock up its 25th anniversary. TJ Hooker TJ Hooker (ITV 1983-5) William Shatner An adequate vehicle for Shatner, suddenly sporting considerably more hair than in Star Trek, as a plain-clothes detective who yearned to be back on the beat. Shatner's middle-aged frame only just fitted into the police uniform. The TJ initials was never explained but Star Trek fans rumour it may be a subtle in-joke reverse of James Tiberius...

Remington Steele Remington Steele (BBC 1983-84 Channel 4 1986-87)) Pierce Brosnan Remington Steele was mythical head of an agency invented by a female private eye Laura Holt because she wasn't getting much work. To her surprise a man bearing that name turned up on her doorstep. A very wooden Pierce Brosnan would have given a tailor's dummy a run for its money in this insipid series weirdly seen as a training ground for his role as James Bond. Sherlock Holmes The Adventures Of Sherlock Holmes The Return Of Sherlock Holmes The Casebook Of Sherlock Holmes (ITV 1984-94) Jeremy Brett Jeremy Brett made Sherlock Holmes his own. A well-mounted and superbly played series. Paired with David Burke, then later Edward Hardwicke as Doctor Watson, Brett's interpretation won many plaudits. This evocation of Holmes was much truer to the original Conan Doyle books. Holmes was only once seen in a deer stalker (even then in the context of a countryside assignment) favouring a top hat when about town. The series wasn't afraid of portraying Holmes' opium habit.

Brett put his all into his mesmerising and at times manic performance. Brett's determination for pefection contributed in part to his premature death in 1995. Frank Burnside The Bill (ITV 1984 onwards) Christopher Ellison Uncompromising hard man Detective Inspector Burnside was a refreshing break from the by-the-book police procedural of The Bill's early days. Appearing in the very first episode as Tommy Burnside the character was revised and really came to the fore when the series went twice weekly in 1988. Even then it was a well made crime drama rather than the neo soap it became. Chris Ellison left the show in the early nineties but returned a few years later as newly promoted DCI Burnside to pep up the ratings and was rewarded when Burnside got his own spin-off series in 2000. The unimaginatively titled Burnside didn't attract sufficient ratings to be recommissioned. Jane Marple Miss Marple (BBC 1984-92) Joan Hickson Well produced, with great attention to the period detail, as one would expect from the BBC.

However, genteel octogenerian Joan Hickson, seemed just a little too old to play Jane Marple. Hickson lacks the jauntiness of Magaret Rutherford, seeming to overplay the confused dowager. In truth Hickson's portrayal is closer to the books and it was rumoured Agatha Christie, late in her career, had suggested Hickson as a suitable actress for the role... Lomax Travelling Man (ITV 1984-85) Leigh Lawson An ex-police inspector sets out on a narrowboat in search of the killers of his son. The waterways backdrop provided a welcome departure from the urban detective shows that surrounded it but Travelling Man was rather slow moving. Lomax clearly wasn't in any great hurry to conclude his investigations. A breath of fresh air nonetheless. Mike Hammer Micky Spillane's Mike Hammer (ITV 1984-86) Stacey Keach Boorish gumshoe Mike Hammer was the focus of this overtly violent pulp thriller. Under-dressed women were seen only as decoration. Little to commend it frankly. ITV wisely pulled the plug when Keach was gaoled for drug offences.

Ripe for parody the whole thing was brilliantly spoofed by Sledge Hammer! very soon afterwards, right down to the PI's love affair with his gun. Mike Hammer called his gun "Betsy" whilst the unthinking Sledge Hammer christened his weapon "gun", even giving it a satin pillow next to his bed! Sonny Crockett, Ricardo Tubbs Miami Vice (BBC 1985-90) Don Johnson, Philip Michael Thomas High-class crime, exotic vistas and shallow fashionistas abounded in this escapist thriller series produced by the talented director Michael Mann. Don Johnson started a trend for "designer" stubble, rolled-up jacket sleeves and pastel t-shirts not to mention deck shoes worn without socks. Crockett is also probably the only detective in TV history to have a pet lizard (named Elvis). At the time it was seen as a more up-to-date take on the buddy cop show. Ultra fashion conscious and very eighties, Miami Vice has dated badly. Both Jan Hammer's signature tune and Crockett's Theme made the top five of the UK charts.

George Bulman Bulman (ITV 1985-87) Don Henderson Sergeant George Bulman had appeared in two other successful series The XYY Man and Strangers. Softly spoken and well read, Bulman was never without a scarf, fingerless gloves and a nasal inhaler. He repaired clocks in his early retirement but his real talent was his detective faculties, and he was coaxed back into the world of private detection by a young Siobhan Redman as Lucy McGinty. Bulman lasted two successful series. Lt. James Dempsey and Lady Harriet Makepeace Dempsey and Makepeace (ITV 1985-86) Michael Brandon, and Glynis Barber A policeman from New York's Ninth Precinct works with a haughty aristocratic Cambridge graduate with royal ancestory, who (weirdly) has aspirations to be a detective. Sharing The Professionals' love of the enjoyably ridiculous, Dempsey and Makepeace were agents for SI10 and each week were involved in increasingly spectacular car chases and stunts always at the expense of a good plot. Designed to follow 3-2-1 when Saturday nights belonged to ITV, the series quickly outstayed its dubious welcome.

The real life romance between Brandon and Barber was far more interesting. Roy Clarke had the show in his sights when he created Pulaski a 1987 spoof private eye show for the BBC wherein the offscreen antics of the stars more than matched anything that appeared onscreen. Ronald Craven Edge Of Darkness (BBC 1985) Bob Peck Bob Peck gives the performance of his career in this superlative thriller as relevant today as it was on first transmission. Peck plays Yorkshire detective Craven. Investigating his daughter's death, Craven uncovers eco and political conspiracies and shady secret service goings-on. The rock music soundtrack by Eric Clapton is used very effectively. This gritty drama is an intelligent high watermark in Eighties TV. David Addison, Maddie Hayes Moonlighting (BBC 1986-90) Bruce Willis, Cybill Shepherd Essentially a fantasy comedy drama. Moonlightlng shares many of the criteria already outlined for the detective drama. Increasingly this includes a theme that makes the charts, in this case courtesy of Al Jarreau. A pre-Die Hard Bruce Willis (later to have a hit single himself) is charming as charismatic gumshoe David Addison.

There's a tense chemistry between Addison and his partner and boss at the Blue Moon Detective Agency, Maddie Hayes. Cybill Shepherd gives one of her most dazzling performances. Full of snappy one-liners, reminiscent of forties screwball comedies, made all the sharper by the revelation the two stars had no time for each other off-camera. Endeavour Morse Inspector Morse (ITV 1987-92, 1997-2000) John Thaw John Thaw returned to the genre which made his name as a radically different policeman to Regan, the enigmatic and silver-haired Endeavour Morse. The dreaming spires of Oxford provided the backdrop to the cases of the classical music-oving Chief Inspector, whose love of real ale tested Thaw's acting mettle, as in reality he preferred vodka. The crossword addict and vintage Jag driver was ably assisted by Kevin Whately as his faithful Sergeant, the decent but very straightforward, Robbie Lewis. Once again the theme (cleverly utilising morse code as a bassline) proved a great success for the impressively monikered composer Barrington Pheuloung.

Reg Wexford Ruth Rendell (ITV 1987 onwards) George Baker Wexford is another in the long line of cerebal 'tecs. This series, always broadcast under the Ruth Rendell umbrella title, was well acted but leaden-paced. Presumably the sleepy village locations and equally sleep-inducing cases was aimed at the cosy Sunday night crowd. Rendell's work as Barbara Vine is altogether more engaging. Alan Rockliffe Rockliffe's Babies, Rockliffe's Folly (BBC 1987-88) Ian Hogg Teetotal, seen-it-all Sergeant Alan Rockliffe finds himself wet-nursing seven rookie detectives making their way (and plenty of mistakes) as part of the Met's Victor Tango division. After two successful urban series, Rockliffe was transferred to Wessex, only to discover crime was as rife in the country as in the city. Ian Hogg played the eponymous Rockliffe, a rather scruffy character in the original series wearing the same jacket and red raincoat throughout. He suddenly developed a taste for classical music (a nod to the success of Morse perhaps?) in the aptly named Rockliffe's Folly.

Lord Peter Wimsey Dorothy L Sayer's Mysteries: Strong Poison, Gaudy Nights (BBC 1987) Edward Petherbridge Notable for it's brilliant Art Deco title sequence, evoking the style and opulence of the twenties and thirties era. This was series of short serials featuring upper class slueth Peter Wimsey and his cohort Harriet Vane played here by Harriet Walter. Well acted and sufficiently intriguing, though unfashionably class ridden. Jack Killian Midnight Caller(BBC1989-93) Gary Cole Reminiscent of the Clint Eastwood film Play Misty For Me and the BBC's Shoestring, Gary Cole who had turned down Miami Vice's Sonny Crockett, starred as the night time radio host. Killian solved crimes brought to his attention by his listeners. Albert Campion Campion (BBC 1989-90) Peter Davison Peter Davison played the bespectacled silly-ass gentleman sleuth Albert Campion. Ably supported by Brian Glover as the impressively named gentleman's gentleman Magersfontien Lugg. This upper crust Margery Allingham detective has much in common with the Lord Peter Wimsey books.

Campion though has more screen presence than Wimsey and the character is more likeable. Then again, Davison is rarely cast against type. Spenser

Question: Which author wrote a series of books about the police or private investigator 'Jemima Shore'?
Answer: ANTONIA FRASER